The present invention relates to a flexible wall covering and more particularly to a flexible wall covering and the method of manufacturing the same that replicates a selected one of a traditional encaustic finish, a traditional stone finish and a traditional plaster finish.
Encaustic art has been known for thousands of years and is art work that is rendered with a wax paint that has been processed with heat to fuse the wax paint to itself and the support for the paint. Traditionally, these encaustic finishes have been applied in thicker coats and uses a more brittle material that would certainly be unsuitable for a "flexible wall covering. One known and preferred synthetic encaustic plaster for the present invention is identified by the trademark KOLCAUSTICO and has been used to provide a variation"; of the encaustic technique directly on walls. This commercially available material is capable of producing a stone-like appearance which may be polished to a high sheen that is characteristic of encaustic art, or with the addition of a flattening agent, will replicate a traditional plaster finish. This material and similar encaustic plaster materials have been designed to be applied directly to walls. However, these products are hard and brittle and, therefore, unsuitable for a flexible wall covering. Furthermore, it is difficult to achieve a completely even application in regard of a well balanced color or design due to preexisting imperfections in the wall. The process of repairing a wall only adds several labor hours.
Using a multi-color technique presents further complications because, in the application of several coats, it is difficult to achieve a smooth look.
The available products, such as KOLCAUSTICO, have been available and were developed to be directly applied to the wall surface. Some disadvantages of this process include the extreme difficulty in repairing a decorative plaster surface that has been damaged or cracked, the high cost of employing a specially trained artisan to perform the time-consuming custom application, and the difficulty of removing such a finish from the wall surface. In addition, one is limited to the design capabilities when using direct wall application as it is a laborious process to administer a variety of techniques to the vertical structure of a wall. However, other products used to generate a plaster or stone finish lack the ability to create the gloss or sheen appearance that is characteristic of encaustic finishes. Thus, the wall appears flat and dull, and further limits the accessibility of several design possibilities.
Other problems related to the use of traditional encaustic materials include the ingredients of wax, solvents and other volatile elements that are highly flammable and, therefore, not conducive to either residential or commercial use. Most paints with the intended use of wall applications that are commercially available are premixed with substances that are designed to achieve a desired degree of sheen when dry. For example, a flat sheen reflects little or no light, while on the other side of the broad spectrum, a high sheen reflects multiple light rays in the selected painted object, thereby producing a glossy or shiny finish. These products are, however, narrowed by the fact that the amount of sheen in the final product will be uniform throughout the selected painted object, such as a wall, and not conducive to achieving a desired design by varying the sheen.